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Pubblicata la newsletter EU-JAPAN NEWS

Tuesday, 12 March 2019

The EPA’s entry into force is the beginning of the story. EPA implementation is key. We should ensure that businesses, in particular SMEs, reap maximum benefits from the EPA. Today, more than 88% of the 64,000 direct EU exporters to Japan are SMEs. Many more are potential beneficiaries of the EPA. Communication, awareness-raising and guidance are essential if both actual and potential European exporters to Japan are to be informed about the opportunities available. To reach out to SMEs across Europe, the EU-Japan Centre is mobilising pan-European networks such as the Enterprise Europe Network, European network of clusters, regions and European industry associations. In Japan, the Centre is setting up a group of EU Member States Trade Promotion Organisations to cooperate ‘on the ground’, and to complement the TPOs’ discussion with the European Commission in Brussels. Moreover, the Centre’s EPA Helpdesk provides simple, but accurate and reliable information on key aspects of the EPA and boosts the Centre’s range of support services for European SMEs such as the Public Procurement Helpdesk, Tech Transfer and IP Helpdesk, and a number of other activities summarised here: https://www.eu-japan.eu/summary-activities EPA implementation should also trigger an overall positive momentum for EU and Japan to reinforce existing and develop new cooperation in a wide range of sectors and in many forms, for example, in research and innovation, space, digital economy, circular economy, co-financing of projects, region2region cooperation and EU-Japan business partnership to operate together in third countries. The EPA will create and trigger many opportunities for EU and Japanese organisations to pursue.